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The Effects of High School Remediation on Long-Run Educational Attainment

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  • Umut Özek

Abstract

This study examines the effects of remedial courses in high school on postsecondary outcomes using a regression discontinuity design and explores the mechanisms behind these effects. I find that being placed in the remedial schedule and taking an additional remedial course in high school reduces the likelihood of attaining a 2- or 4-year college degree by 20 percent. The findings also suggest that nearly half of this adverse effect is driven by the tracking effect of remediation, which significantly reduces students’ access to advanced courses in high school not only in the remediation subject but also in other core subjects.

Suggested Citation

  • Umut Özek, 2025. "The Effects of High School Remediation on Long-Run Educational Attainment," CESifo Working Paper Series 11908, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11908
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    File URL: https://www.ifo.de/DocDL/cesifo1_wp11908.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Shaun M. Dougherty, 2015. "Bridging the Discontinuity in Adolescent Literacy? Mixed Evidence from a Middle Grades Intervention," Education Finance and Policy, MIT Press, vol. 10(2), pages 157-192, March.
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    3. Matthew M. Chingos & Kenneth A. Couch, 2013. "Class Size and Student Outcomes: Research and Policy Implications," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(2), pages 411-438, March.
    4. Eren, Ozkan & Depew, Briggs & Barnes, Stephen, 2017. "Test-based promotion policies, dropping out, and juvenile crime," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 153(C), pages 9-31.
    5. Ozkan Eren & Michael F. Lovenheim & H. Naci Mocan, 2022. "The Effect of Grade Retention on Adult Crime: Evidence from a Test-Based Promotion Policy," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 40(2), pages 361-395.
    6. Joshua D. Angrist & Miikka Rokkanen, 2015. "Wanna Get Away? Regression Discontinuity Estimation of Exam School Effects Away From the Cutoff," Journal of the American Statistical Association, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 110(512), pages 1331-1344, December.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    remedial courses; college readiness; postsecondary outcomes; human capital;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality

    NEP fields

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